QPR wage bill doubles for year ending in May 2012

Despite their staff costs rising from to 56 million pounds last season, chairman Tony Fernandes insists that maintaining a Premier League place justified the costs.

Figures from QPR's latest financial report show that the club's wage bill doubled in the year from May 2011 to 2012, before this January's spending spree.

The West Londoners are at the bottom of the Premier League table despite spending heavily and twice breaking their own transfer record in the winter window by signing Loic Remy and Christopher Samba.

The latest report, for the year ending 31 May 2012, a period before those deals - as well as others for Park Ji-Sung, Julio Cesar and Jose Bosingwa took place - shows a huge increase in the club's spending.

The club's turnover rose from 34.6 million pounds to 74 million, but their expenditure on wages also soared from 27.6 million pounds to a massive 56 million in a season during which it escaped relegation on the final day of the season.

With reports indicating that Samba and Remy are respectively on 100,000 and 75,000 pounds a week, QPR chairman Tony Fernandes admitted he is "conscious of the need for expenditure to be closely monitored and controlled" but insisted the team's success at staying in the top flight matched last term's spending.

"A critical driver of any club's value is its presence in the Premier League, and the club achieved its key objective for the 2011-12 season, by successfully securing its Premier League status for the coming season," Fernandes said in his directors' report. "The financial results reflect the club's focus on on-pitch success.

"There are a number of potential risks and uncertainties that could have a material impact on the group's long-term performance.

"These risks and uncertainties are monitored by the board on a regular basis."